The show opens with Mount Rushmore interrupting Excalibur. They throw trash in the ring and say the fans paid to see them and no one else. In turn, Excalibur makes The Bucks match with Joey & Candice a title match. This leads to The Bucks trying to superkick him, but Steen stops them and says he needs him for commentary.
1) Peter Avalon & Ray Rosas vs. B-Boy & Willie Mack
These two teams would take part in a killer opening bout later in the year however this match was nothing like it. Willie seemed like the only guy who was motivated to making this one good. There was once nice exchange near the end, but it dragged on and on prior to that. Pretty underwhelming opening match.
Match rating - **1/4
2) Kevin Steen vs. ACH
This was a pretty unique match. Steen did a fantastic job showcasing his character change since turning heel as pretty much toyed with ACH for the first 5-10 minutes. He also jawed with the crowd more than he normally does saying things like "I'm your dad!" to a fan and proclaiming "Sami Zayn is a gd bitch!" It was a change of pace however I think it hindered on the action in the match. It told a nice story though so I can't complain.
Match rating - ***
3) Chuck Taylor & Trent? vs. AR Fox & Rich Swann
Up until about the half way point of this match, the show felt like it hadn't kicked out of low gear, but these guys did the job by busting out the goods in the final ten minutes of this bout. It's not normal for a PWG show to take this long to get cranked up which is why I'm mentioning it. None the less, these two teams delivered a match that was exactly what the show needed at this point. It started slow however they really turned it up during the second half and got the crowd on fire. Really enjoyed this one.
Match rating - ***1/2
4) Brian Cage vs. Drake Younger vs. Tony Nese vs. Tommaso Ciampa
It was crucial for this bout to continue the momentum that the latter part of the previous match created and these guys did just that. From the opening moments where Ciampa pushed Drake off the bar and began brawling with him which led to an air raid crash on the ring apron just minutes in, I knew this match would be nuts. I don't think the action ever slowed down here, it was fucking bonkers. This one was simply UN-BE-LIEVABLEEE!
Match rating - ***3/4
5) Johnny Gargano vs. Roderick Strong
We go from an insane spotfest to a fantastic technical bout. Thats why I love PWG, they give you every style and showcase it in awesome fashion. Gargano had a big coming out party at BOLA with a victory over Kevin Steen and he continued his hot streak here by delivering a hardhitting match with one of the all time PWG greats, Roderick Strong. Really good bout.
Match rating - ***3/4
6) The Young Bucks vs. Joey Ryan & Candice LeRae - PWG World Tag Team Title Match
Candice became a star in the classic six man tag at BOLA one month prior to this match so the crowd was super into her here. She came out swinging before the bell even rang as she delivered a double ballsplex to the Bucks which was followed up by a flip over the top rope by Joey. That set the tone for the rest of the match as the action kept going at a pretty steady pace the entire time with the main story being how Candice has stepped her game up and proved she can hang with the best of them. Her resilience was really put on display here. Awesome tag match.
Match rating - ****
7) Adam Cole vs. Kyle O'Reilly - PWG World Title Match
Future Shock exploded here in this match as the 2012 BOLA Winner & PWG Champion Adam Cole faced former partner & 2013 BOLA Winner Kyle O'Reilly. This was their first ever encounter in PWG and easily their most high stakes encounter ever. They did a great job of playing off the fact that they know each other well because of their past as a team. Some instances of this came with Cole countering Kyle's Axe & Smash/Saito Suplex combo and Kyle reversing out of the Panama Sunrise. Cole worked the leg early on and O'Reilly did a good job selling it for most of the match up. The ending was screwy with The Bucks coming down only for Kyle to hit the running dropkick off the apron on them, but Steen would hit the ring and nail O'Reilly with the package piledriver allowing Cole to get the win. Still a really great match though, the ending was logical considering the Mt Rushmore storyline was just getting started at this point in time.
Match rating - ****
After the match, Steen & The Bucks start kicking O'Reilly which leads to AR Fox and Rich Swann coming out to try to make the save. The Bucks take control of them however which leads to "Drake" chants. The fans get what they ask for as Drake Younger runs down to a huge pop and starts cleaning house until he gets to Steen. Drake gets taken out and Mount Rushmore is standing tall, still toying with everyone in the ring. Johnny Gargano, Tony Nese, Trent, Willie Mack, Joey and Candice are out next followed by Chuck Taylor who comes down from the commentary booth. They finally run Mount Rushmore out of the ring as Gargano grabs a mic. Gargano gives a great rally speech about how much he loves PWG and how everyone is tired of Rushmore. The roster stares down Mt Rushmore from the ring as Gargano lays out a challenge to Cole for the next show. Nice way to close the night out with all the babyfaces standing tall in the ring.
Thanks for reading and be sure to follow me on Twitter @EthanPWT and this blog @ThePWTruth!
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